Underneath The Waves
by Faithful Strings
Summary: Strength, Intelligence, Courage, Honesty; four tests. Tests that could save a life, or many lives. Monkey D. Luffy wishes to surpass every Elite in history, whilst Trafalgar Law just wants to be rid of his past. Are dreams all a person needs? Or do they need other things? :: YAOI :: LAWLU :: A/U :: SMUT :: LANGUAGE :: YOU ARE WARNED!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own _One Piece_, only my _own characters_.**

**Underneath The Waves.**

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**Rating: M**

**Part: 1/?**

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**NOTE:**** Hey guys! Forgive me, I've gone off track & read books that gave me ideas for fanfictions. This actually happened via fairytales, I have a habit of reading them when I'm depressed. I also watched a film called 'After Earth' or some bullshit, it's got Jaden Smith & his father in it, so hi. I wanted to write a mix between them, but add my own twist to it.**

**There are a few OC's (own characters) in this story, but I assure you that I will _try_ keep them in the background until absolutely needed. However, there are a few that will be mentioned throughout the story, but I'll try to keep it more LawLu and stuff.**

**I hope you enjoy!**

**Grammar/spelling errors ahead~**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_

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Strength, Intelligence, Courage, Honesty; four tests. Tests that could save a life, or many lives. A child is able to take two of these tests: Intelligence and Honesty. A teenager is able to take all four of them, and if they pass them; they are able to become an Elite. Sixty four students, four out of them will be picked to go onto another test. Another test, twenty four students, another four will be picked. Fourteen students, the same thing happens, but after that; said four become Elites.

It was a harsh, dangerous world where parents made bets, and bragged to other families about their children. Hell, some parents even sold their children to the slavers, if it meant being able to get the 'pathetic' ones out of their lives. Monkey D. Luffy was an exception to all of this, he had a rather sheltered life, and lived with one of the 'top' soldiers; Monkey D. Garp. Portgas D. Ace had been thrown through the tests and had come second, not for intelligence; but because he had all of the traits an Elite needed.

_"I want to become an Elite, just like Ace!"_

Luffy had yelled after the teen had come home, acting like a completely different person. Luffy had felt ignored and forgotten, so at a party celebrating the new Elites, Luffy had declared that he was going to surpass every Elite in history, and that he was going to become the 'ultimate Elite'; he would be free, if he surpassed everyone. Ace had begged Luffy not to do the tests, crying that Luffy would change; just like Ace had.

_"I want people to recognize freedom, Ace! I want people to fight for it, too."_

Ace, knowing the boy wouldn't change his mind, had accepted the fact and had stood up for Luffy whenever his family tried to stop him. It was nice to finally have somebody on his side, but.. that all went away when the day of the First Exam began.

* * *

Luffy peeled his eyes open, listening to Ace bustle about, obviously limping from his previous night out. Luffy didn't know what Ace did on his nights out, Ace always said he went to a bar with some friends, and Luffy had asked - rather innocently - if he could join them.

_"Lu! You stick to soda, okay? Soda is good. It doesn't cost as much, either!"_

Ace had cried, and Garp had barked out a laugh, whilst Ace's blonde friend had smirked widely at Ace. Luffy had merely blinked, wondering if Ace had said something funny. Luffy was shook out of his thoughts by a hand on his shoulder, gently shaking him out of his drowsy mind.

"Lu, come on. You'll be late if you sleep in." Ace murmured and Luffy nodded into his pillow, sitting up slowly. It was still dark outside, but Luffy could see thanks to the dim lighting from the globe light next to his bed. Luffy yawned and stretched, yelping when Ace threw him his clothes. "Hurry up, we have to go to the Hall."

"Un.." Luffy nodded again and pushed the blankets back, yawning again. Ace left the room, giving Luffy his privacy to dress. '_Ace said that the others will probably know each other, so I should try to make friends._' Luffy stood up and stripped from his clothes, pulling on the outfit Ace had laid out for him; a deep red hoodie, a pair of black three quarter shorts, his usual sandals and finally.. his trademark straw hat. '_Shanks, are you going to be watching the tests?_' Luffy wondered, looking down at the straw hat in his hands. Shanks, a criminal who the government somewhat trusted, had given Luffy his precious straw hat to look after; stating that Luffy should only return it, when he surpassed his own goals._  
_

"Lu!" Ace pushed the door open, snapping Luffy out of his thoughts once again. "Come on."

"But, breakfast-?"

"No. It's better to _not _eat before the tests." Ace grinned widely and grabbed Luffy by the shoulder, beginning to drag him out of the door. "I can't wait to see my crybaby little brother go head to head with these idiots."

"Ace," a gruff voice growled and the pair looked up to see Garp, their grandfather. "You _know _who's in there this year, right? They are _no where _near the level of idiots."

"Old geezer, just because they're part of powerful families, doesn't mean Luffy doesn't stand a chance." Ace snapped, pulling Luffy into his side.

"Yeah!" Luffy grinned widely, laughing. "I'm going to kick their asses!"

"Except for three of them." Garp murmured and Luffy rolled his eyes, he knew all of this. Garp and Ace had their bets on three other people; though, Luffy didn't know who these people were. "Anyway's, good luck, kid."

"Shishishi, arigatou!" Garp narrowed his eyes slowly, sighing as they closed. "Ace, let's go!"

"Right!"

Luffy was enthusiastic now, but he was unaware of the horrors that were in these tests. They _really _pushed a person's abilities to their limits, and further. This is what Ace had gone through, and it had changed him; he was on edge constantly, and could never _really _be the carefree rebel he used to be. Ace had read somewhere, probably in one of the many books Marco had thrown at him, that fear wasn't an emotion; it was a choice. Nobody forced him to be afraid, so Ace was afraid from his own choice; he was afraid that Luffy would become the same, too.

* * *

The Hall was huge, it reached up into the dark abyss above their city, its lights shining downwards; creating an eerie mist. Glass tubes ran around the building, and most of the city, and inside these tubes were either pavements, tracks or roads. Glass domes created towns or cities, and Luffy sometimes wondered how they did it.

"Sugoi.." Luffy had only seen the Hall once, and that was when he was a very young teenager. Ace glared at the building, treating it as if it were the offspring of Satan. Luffy looked about the area, several other teenagers were standing with adults, either looking smug, indifferent or intimidating. Luffy noticed a man in a yellow and black hoodie, he was standing with a flamboyant man, an unreadable expression on his face as he made small talk with other adults. The teen looked in Luffy's direction, and their eyes met briefly.

"Luffy." Ace grabbed Luffy's wrist, but was stopped when they were greeted by a young teen. "You-?!"

"My parents forced me." The teen interrupted monotonously, but Luffy wasn't paying attention; a fatal mistake on his part. Luffy was too interested in the strange man, who was gazing at him from across the yard. He casually licked his lips and Luffy shivered, but didn't look away. Suddenly, the teen was walking towards him, excusing himself from his current conversation. Luffy shot his brother a look, and was glad to see he was too engrossed in his conversation to care, before he slipped away to meet the teen half way.

_Thud._

Luffy's footsteps were quiet in reality, but in his mind; they were all he could hear, along with his racing heartbeat. He had never seen this man before, yet Luffy felt a weird sensation fall over him, pulling him to the stranger.

_Thud._

They were closer now, and Luffy shot a nervous look over his shoulder. Ace was still distracted, good.. that was.. somehow good. The girl he was speaking to, however, met his gaze with a dull look. Luffy's eyes widened, would she tell Ace that Luffy was creeping away? When the girl simply looked away and continued speaking, Luffy heaved a sigh of relief.

_Thud!_

Luffy gasped as he crashed into somebody, and quickly looked up to apologize to the person. His words caught in his throat, it was the man. He was smirking widely and a hand was holding Luffy's arm firmly, keeping him from falling over.

"My, my.." his voice was so silky, and Luffy felt his face become hotter, it took a moment to realize he was blushing. "Somebody as fragile as yourself should watch where they're going."

"I'm _not _fragile." Luffy denied instantly, glaring, but still blushing. He may have had a sheltered lifestyle, but he had also trained for multiple years; getting ready for the tests.

"Oh, don't get upset." The man moved a hand to caress Luffy's cheek, and Luffy jerked away quickly. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, let me apologize~"

"No. Tell me why you were- are.. looking at me like that?" Luffy snapped, earning an amused look from the taller man.

"Like what, hm?" Luffy held back a shiver, and turned his head to the side, causing the man to run his finger down Luffy's neck. "My, you look incredibly... _delicious_."

"E-Eh? Stop- what are you-?" Luffy gasped as the man swooped forwards, flicking his tongue along Luffy's jawline, before casually pulling back. '_Maybe.. this was a bad idea._'

"Gomenasai, did I scare you?"

"No! Of course not! Why would I be scared of my opponent?" Luffy snapped and the man chuckled.

"Fear isn't a bad thing, my adorable Koneko-ya." Luffy hummed at the nickname, but paid close attention to the man's sentence. "Fear is just a trick our mind plays on us, but it's a funny little thing to feel, ne?" Luffy shrugged indifferently. "Tell me, Koneko-ya," the man moved so that he was closer to Luffy's ear. "What are your fears?"

"I don't have any fears." Luffy growled through gritted teeth. A lie, of course, everyone had fears; it was part of the human brain. Luffy had three main fears, and he wanted to see if the man could figure them out himself.

"Let me figure them out, then." Luffy narrowed his eyes. He hadn't let _anyone_, not even Ace, know his fears; only himself, of course.

"Fine. But-"

"Luffy!" Ace's voice interrupted, calling from the crowd. Luffy paused, heaving a sigh of.. _disappointment_?

"You'll need allies in the test." The man muttered quickly, suddenly becoming serious. "The landing locations are always different, but we all have the same objective, meaning we all have the same map in our minds."

"Right.." Luffy replied slowly, looking up at the man once again. "What are you suggesting?"

"The first town that everyone goes to is the supply wagon, where you get your supplies; obviously. Weapons, too. Meet me there."

"Are we allies.. then?"

"Yes."

"I want to know your name, then."

"Trafalgar Law." The man, Law, held his hand out to Luffy politely; it was obviously just for show, though.

"Monkey D. Luffy." Luffy took his hand and Law chuckled, squeezing the boy's hand softly.

"I'll remember it, Monkey-ya." Law murmured, before he looked up to somebody calling his name. "Ja ne, for now."

"Ja ne." Law then turned and disappeared into the crowd, leaving Luffy alone. Law was his ally. They had to build a bond of trust between them, in order to win this. He hoped Law was good with friendships, because Luffy was going to try his hardest with this.

* * *

After finding Ace, the pair were separated almost instantly. The students all walked together, being herded through the Hall by men in weird suits. The girl from before walked next to Luffy, her eyes narrowed as she glared at the men. Law was walking with a tall redhead, who's hair seemed to defy gravity.

"Welcome!" a voice boomed as they came to a stop in a large room. Luffy looked around, it was dark, but Luffy could still see. People looked casual, as if they had just walked into a beautiful park. Whilst Luffy was nervous, but excited, and glancing about eagerly. "Welcome to the first test: Strength."

"This is going to be easy." Some people murmured, earning a laugh from the mysterious voice.

"Oh, how wrong you are." Luffy looked up, gazing at a screen like everyone else. "There are some brilliant opponents here, most of them are trained with lethal weapons that could decapitate three people within a single strike!"

"Tsk!"

"Now, I want to say to the newbies of this test.." newbies? There were people who were taking this test _again_?! "You _will _be pushed to your limits, but I want you to remember; if anything pushes you _too far_, you are able to wake up from this test." Luffy narrowed his eyes slowly. "Yosh! Now, split up into your usual groups; boys and girls. Girls on the right, boys on the left. It's time to begin!"

"Oi," a hand caught Luffy's shoulder, and Luffy looked back to see the girl, who held the same indifferent expression. "Good luck, kid. You'll need it." With that, she turned on her heel and walked over to her group, standing with a girl who had bright blue eyes and short ebony hair. Luffy walked over to his group quickly, and stood between two older boys; one with bright green hair, and the other with weird eyebrows.

"Hm, you're new here." The green haired boy, smirked. "This is great, somebody who me and the Ero-Cook can use as our punching bag."

"Tsk! I won't lose to people like _you_." The blonde laughed at Luffy's defiance, and turned to him.

"Well, our meeting shall be interesting, then. I'm Sanji, the marimo is Zoro."

"Luffy." Luffy introduced and Sanji nodded, smiling softly.

"If you manage to beat us." Sanji continued and Zoro looked over to him, snorting. "Will you let us travel with you?"

"Sure, why not." Luffy grinned, tilting his head, forgetting about Law momentarily. "You have some nerve taking me on."

"Really?" Zoro muttered, rolling his eyes. "You look like a twig, how strong are you?"

"You'll see." As Luffy said this, a gloved hand grabbed his arm and pulled it upwards, before a thin, cold needle pressed into his wrist. "E-Eh?"

"It gives you a map in your mind." Sanji explained calmly. "And enables you to transport into the world of the test."

"Oh." Was Luffy's genius reply. "This is really advanced. Ace said it was simple."

"Ace? You mean one of the Four Elites?" Zoro asked, surprised. "You know him?"

"Yeah, he's my brother."

"Really? Sugoi!" Sanji gasped, looking slightly sceptical of the new information. Luffy simply nodded and looked up, listening to the voice above them.

"Yosh, everyone's prepared? Mentally? No? I don't care. Start!" in a spark of light, that felt like it was burning into Luffy, the group were teleported into the map. Luffy looked around, he was in an open field, the sky above him was a light pink and the sun looked like blood. The grass beneath him was green, and Luffy shivered in mild fear.

'_Calm down._' Luffy told himself, inhaling swiftly. '_Panicking will create openings._'

_Beep!_

Luffy blinked and saw a blinking number in front of him, it said '10'. Luffy watched it count down with a '_beep!_' each time.

_5.._

Luffy swallowed and balled his hands up into tight fists, ready to break out into a sprint. He was heading straight forwards, like the map told him. He knew, like Law had said, that other people were going to be heading there; he just hoped he was quicker than them.

_4.._

Three seconds left, three seconds until Luffy was thrown into a wild exam to test his strength. Marco, Ace's best friend, had told him that they tested two things; he hadn't told Luffy those two things, but by the look on Ace's face, he was sure it was something horrible.

_3.._

Two seconds left. Luffy needed to grab some food from the supply wagon, and a drink. He was already starving, and wondered why Ace had told him not to eat; he _had _given a reason, but Luffy was too hungry to remember. He hoped Law was going to survive the first few hours, he seemed weaker than Luffy.. but never judge a book by it's cover, right?

_2.._

One second left. Luffy's memories rolled back to the hooded girl's words, why had she told him he _needed _luck? He'd have to ask Law, when they met. Even though, Luffy had a feeling they'd be travelling for a while, since Law seemed like the type to go into a fight using intelligence more than anything.

_1.._

There was a brief pause, before a large voice called 'GO!', and Luffy did just that. He took off running, trying to get used to the feeling of running on such uneven ground. The scenery blurred by, and it took Luffy a moment to realize he was running downhill... a _very _steep downhill, may he add. Luffy's eyes widened in horror, he was basically running along a vertical surface.

'_WHAT THE HELL?!_' Luffy's mind screeched. He wondered if the others had to go through this- no, wait, stupid. They were all 'spawned' on different areas of the map, and _obviously _the map was different in other places. Luffy could tell this was going to be a long, _long _exam; regardless of it being the 'easiest' test. However, the 'oldies' were used to this, so maybe they'd reach their main objective first; maybe they'd reach the mountain that everyone worked so hard to get to, and leave the newbies behind, struggling to figure out what was going on. He hoped Law would stay with him, he was slightly frightened of this test alone.. but he couldn't let that get to him. Luffy was strong, and he was going to pass this test; no matter what.

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**Note: WHEW FOR THE HUNGER GAMES/SWORD ART ONLINE/OTHER BULLSHIT REFERENCES! xD**

**I dunno, this just.. 'came' to me, as people say. You'll see the fairytale references in future chapters. Also, this OC (the mysterious girl who wished Luffy good luck!) is a character I have had for _MONTHS_, and I haven't had anywhere to slot her in. She's a pretty awesome character, if this was the normal universe.. you'd be able to see the awesome Devil Fruit ability I made up for her!:3  
**

**I hope you enjoyed.**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own _One Piece_, only my _own characters_.**

**Underneath The Waves.**

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**Rating: M**

**Part: 2/?**

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**NOTE:**** Hey guys! You know when you're listening to depressing songs (AKA MY IMMORTAL, OMF, DA FEELS), and you just get a bunch of ideas for future chapters? Ha. Not me everyday of my life. Why would I do that. Nope. I'm not your everyday troll author, I swear.**

**I'm casually having a Simon Curtis (FUCKING LOVE THIS GUY, OMF!) marathon whilst writing _Yaoi _fanfiction. This is probably one of the best ideas I've had in ages (obvious sarcasm)! It's like, I have so many ideas for future smut scenes now.. genius Strings strikes again! xD**

**I hope you enjoy.**

**Grammar/spelling errors ahead~**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_

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_He hoped Law would stay with him, he was slightly frightened of this test alone.. but he couldn't let that get to him. Luffy was strong, and he was going to pass this test; no matter what._

* * *

Trafalgar Law walked down a rocky path, his hands tucked into his pockets as usual. A dull expression was on his face, as usual. He knew Donquixote Doflamingo and the family were watching him, so he remained indifferent as usual. If he failed, Doflamingo would punish him thoroughly; and Law wasn't looking forward to it. He hated submitting to people, especially assholes like Doflamingo. Law gritted his teeth as he looked up, glaring up at the pinkish sky above him. He wanted nothing more than to disappear from their view, and escape; he couldn't do that, though. Law had no choice but to stay with them, and it was torture.

Law had been so focused on the exams for years, so he was surprised when he had felt a single emotion towards a stranger. Law had had his fair share of toys in the past, but he had felt nothing towards them, only amusement and disgust. So, when he met Monkey D. Luffy, he was surprised to feel something towards him; he had just met him, but he wanted Luffy to be apart of his everyday life. He'd have to protect him from Doflamingo and his family, but he was willing to place his life down for the kid, surprisingly. Luffy just had _that _personality, a personality that made Law want to scream and kill the kid, but also hug him and keep him sheltered from the hell they called reality.

_"Trafalgar, you're allied with the new kid, right?"_

Eustass Kidd had questioned before they had been transported into the map. He had sounded doubtful, and Law didn't blame him; Luffy didn't look strong or intimidating, he looked adorable and fragile. Kidd and Law had a 'mutual agreement', they weren't going to attack each other like the other idiots, and Kidd had agreed to not touch Luffy, either. Law had smirked and replied with 'yes, Eustass-ya'.

_"Keep him in sight, at all times. Understand?"_

Law had been confused at the time, and he still was, but hadn't had time to question Kidd. Law sighed and continued walking, he needed to get to the city by nightfall, at least. He knew people would reach the city before that time, but he needed to take his time, so he could think out a strategy. It was going to be a long journey.

* * *

"_You are: 10 minutes away from **Supply Wagon**._"

Luffy let out a cheer of victory, he had spent his entire time running, much to his body's dismay. Luffy didn't know if it was possible to run 50 miles in 5 hours, but apparently the world was on his side, because he had done just that. Luffy hadn't met anyone along the way, and Luffy didn't know whether to be sad or relieved.

_Boom! Crackle!_

Luffy looked up to see tall buildings, he was still a few minutes away from the city, but a hooded female was sprinting down some marble steps with her arms pushing the air behind her, keeping her upright. Luffy recognized her as the female from before, and wondered if it was a good idea to call out to her; he did it anyway's.

"Ah? Oi~!" the girl whipped around with wide, horrified eyes. Luffy grinned widely, laughing; he could practically hear his brother's scolding, and Marco's sniggering. "Ne, why are you here?" the girl backed away quickly, her shoulders heaving, signalling she was exhausted from her trek to the city.

"Tsk!" she balled her hands up into tight fists and looked to the side, and Luffy followed her gaze. A redhead was bolting from two large wolves, his eyes widened with horror as he bit back his cries. Before Luffy could blink, a wolf had turned its attention to himself, and was racing towards him. Luffy froze, surprised and terrified; no, terrified wasn't the right word.. paralysed? No, he was _seriously _paralysed.

_Thud!_

In a flash, the hooded girl was standing in front of Luffy, her hands scooped up some dirt and she threw it into the face of the wolf. It growled and shook its head, whilst the girl grabbed Luffy's hand and dragged him towards the marble steps, pulling Luffy along like a dog. Luffy gasped and forced his legs to work, staggering a little, before he bolted with the girl. The wolf was soon bounding up behind them, and the pair picked up their pace quickly. Soon enough, they were running down the steps and the wolves skidded to a stop, growling and thrashing at them.

"Wha-?" the hooded girl had already began walking off, clearly not interested in explaining anything to Luffy. "Oi!" Luffy moved to run after her, but was yanked back by a firm, rough hand. "Get off!" Luffy struggled and whipped around, glaring up to the stranger. It was the redhead.

"I don't recommend going after her, kid. Her allies always end up dead, y'know?" he grunted, eventually letting Luffy go from his vice grip. "Trafalgar wants me to keep you safe until he gets here."

"That's very bloody thoughtful of him. I'm fine on my own." Luffy snapped and the redhead glared.

"Listen here, brat." The redhead shoved Luffy backwards, until he was pinned up to a brick wall with an arm on either side of his body, boxing him in. "You formed an alliance with Trafalgar, that means you don't _get _to act selfish and play hero. You have to learn to play with others, or you're going to end up _dead_." Luffy scowled up to the redhead, gritting his teeth.

"Fine." Luffy agreed coldly, and the redhead backed off slowly.

"We have to get food, weapons and other supplies." The redhead murmured and Luffy nodded. "C'mon."

"Who are you-?"

"Kidd." The redhead interrupted, before he turned and began walking off, with Luffy trailing behind. Why hadn't Law arrived yet? His alliance was with Law, not Kidd.. Kidd seemed rather temperamental, too; and Luffy hadn't fought with somebody like Kidd before. "Grab the nodachi, kid." Kidd ordered as they walked into a large shop, gesturing to a sheathe with white crosses on it. "Trafalgar can't live without it."

"Kay." Luffy hopped up and grabbed the nodachi from the shelf, whilst Kidd grabbed a few weapons for himself.

"Here." Kidd handed Luffy a sheathed dagger, looking rather reluctant about it, however. "Ask Trafalgar to teach you how to use it. We keep our weapons throughout all of the tests, so you'll have plenty of time to learn."

"Thanks." Luffy smiled and tied the dagger to his belt. The pair spent their time collecting supplies around the city, before they found an inn to stay in. "How long do these tests go on for?"

"Strength usually goes on for about a week." Kidd explained and booked a room for two; one with a single bed, and the other with two separate beds. "The others depend."

"Oh." Luffy grabbed his belongings and began walking up the stairs, Kidd close behind. They ran into the girl, surprisingly, and Kidd pulled Luffy behind him swiftly. "Eh?"

"Don't trust her, kid." Kidd grumbled, glaring at the girl coldly. She didn't look fazed by the glare and cold attitude, she simply continued walking towards the stairs, her dead eyes looking at the pair distantly. "How did you make it here so quickly?"

"I refuse to give away my tactics, Eustass." She murmured monotonously, coming to a stop in front of the pair. "Move."

"Not until you tell me." Kidd snarled and the girl narrowed her eyes slowly, gritting her teeth in obvious anger. "Did I anger you, brat?"

"I believe I am older, Eustass." The girl replied, glancing up at the beams above them. "Get out of the way, or I'll use force."

"I'm trembling." Kidd grumbled sarcastically. The girl was shorter and thinner than Kidd, and was even shorter than Luffy; she probably stood at around 4'8" or something, but she looked intimidating with the newly found anger in her eyes. "Aw, look, you're showing- OOF!" Kidd was suddenly on his back, and the girl was jumping down from a beam.

"Ja ne, _brat_." She hissed tauntingly, before she turned to Luffy, nodded once and disappeared down the stairs. Kidd laid on the wooden floor, groaning as he cupped his chin in his hands.

"I think she broke every bone in my body.." Kidd moaned, earning a small eye roll from Luffy. Kidd was being an over dramatic asshole, and Luffy _wanted _to break every bone in Kidd's body. The pair eventually got to their rooms, and Luffy looked about quietly. It was big enough, and it'd do for their makeshift camp.

'_Well.. I guess it's okay, ne..?_' Luffy pushed the door shut and claimed the bed closest to the wall, before he headed towards the bathroom to clean off. '_Law better hurry up, I'm going to end up wanting to look for him._'

* * *

Meanwhile, said teen walked through the same long grass, heading towards the city that was a few minutes away. He had sneaked around several wolves, and was lucky that he hadn't kicked any of their tails. Law sighed and rubbed at his eyes, he was exhausted from taking the long route. It was the safest route, though, so it was worth it. However, he wanted nothing more than to curl up in the grass and fall asleep; he couldn't do that, because he'd end up with a hole in his chest.. _literally_.

'_How long have I been travelling?_' Law wondered, heaving a heavy sigh. He could see the tops of the rooftops by now, and he could hear the shrill shrieks from newbies. Law groaned and forced himself into a sprint, pushing himself along the uneven ground quickly. He needed to get to Luffy, so he could explain what was going to happen in future tests. It was usually a surprise, but Law felt the need to explain the basics. Law jumped over several holes in the ground, and finally spotted the marble steps that protected the city from any cannibals. Law reached the steps rather easily, and bolted down them hastily. People shot him looks of confusion, before they turned back to their conversations with other students. 'Monkey-ya, where are you?' Law skidded to a stop as he spotted Eustass Kidd, and called out to him; "Eustass-ya!"

"Huh?" the redhead turned, his cold eyes narrowed in Law's direction. "Trafalgar?"

"Eustass-ya!" Law ran up to his... _frienemy_, smirking. Kidd heaved an angry sigh and ruffled Law's hair, earning a frustrated scowl.

"Took you long enough, Trafalgar."

"I was being wise, Eustass-ya." Law grumbled and Kidd rolled his eyes, shrugging. "Where's Monkey-ya?"

"In the usual inn." Kidd replied bluntly. "Oi, could you kick her ass for me? She seems to have a mutual agreement with herself, so she won't attack you or the kid."

"Her-? Oh... _oooh_.." Law chuckled a low, breathy chuckle. "No, Eustass-ya. I don't want to seem like the bad guy, here. If she's not going to attack me or Monkey-ya, I'm not going to attack her."

"That's going to cause you karma, y'know?"

"Probably." Law agreed with an indifferent shrug. "Thanks, Eustass-ya. If you don't pass this year, I'm sure you'll pass some other year." Law taunted, before he bolted away from the younger teen, to avoid Kidd's wrath. The run was shorter than Law expected, and when he entered the old inn, he was greeted by the scent of alcohol and cigars. Law sighed and walked up to the counter, looking for Luffy's name; it was under Kidd's name, unsurprisingly. He avoided a glass thrown in his direction, before he disappeared up the stairs. '_589.. 589_..' Law walked up multiple flights of stairs, before he found the room. He knocked on the door and a muffled squeak came from the other side. "Monkey-ya?"

_ Creak! _

The door swung open in seconds, and Law was met with the very pleasant sight of Luffy in a towel. He smirked widely, boldly eyeing his companion up and down, earning a blush from the boy. Law sauntered into the room, brushing his hand up against Luffy's side slowly, causing Luffy to whimper and shiver. Law pushed the door shut, locking it.

"My, what a skimpy outfit." Law cooed, walking over to the chair on the other side of the room. Luffy wandered over to his bed, grabbing some clothes for himself. "Are you really going to change, Monkey-ya~?"

"Un." Luffy confirmed, not looking at Law. Law smirked widely and looked out of the window, people were slowly beginning to retire to their inns, and Law was grateful. He just wanted to sleep without people screaming at each other. By the time Law looked back over to his companion, he was already wearing some nightwear. Law pouted, he had missed Luffy changing. "Ne, Law..?"

"Hm?" Law hummed, tilting his head backwards slightly.

"C-Can we push the beds together, please?"

"Sure." Law didn't have the energy to question Luffy, he simply watched the boy push the beds together, before flopping down with a yawn. "Are you really _that_ tired?"

"Un, Ace woke me up extra early, and I didn't have any breakfast." Luffy murmured in response, yawning again. Law smiled softly, watching Luffy climb under the blankets and snuggle into Law's pillows. Luffy was adorable. "Law?" Luffy asked drowsily.

"Yes?" Law stood up and walked over to the bed, pulling his hoodie and boots off on the way. Luffy watched from behind his bangs, and Law made a show of sliding his trousers off. "Monkey-ya?"

"Um.." Luffy turned to face the wall, pulling the blankets up closer to his throat. "Never mind." Law narrowed his eyes and crawled onto the bed, heaving a sigh. Luffy eventually turned back to Law and snuggled into his chest. "I'm cold." Law's eyes softened and he pulled the blankets up over his body.

"Just relax, Monkey-ya." Law ordered gently, resting his head on Luffy's pillows. Luffy nodded once, and within a few minutes, Luffy's chest slowed and he relaxed into Law's warmth. The pair fell asleep rather quickly, both exhausted from their journey's. Law held Luffy close to his chest with a protective aura covering him, he didn't want to let his adorable Koneko-ya go, because he may leave Law. He didn't want to be left alone, because it felt good to have somebody in his arms for once. "Mm.." Law hummed, sighing softly in his sleep. Luffy had wrapped his limbs around Law's body, ignoring the slight discomfort he caused for both of them. They really _were _an adorable couple.

* * *

"That _idiot_." A low voice growled, followed by cackling in the background. "DAMARE!"

"Oh, Ace-_chan_, you should have trained your adorable brother a little better~"

_SMASH!_

The cackling increased, whilst people stared in horror at the two men in front of the screens. Portgas D. Ace was enraged, whilst Donquixote Doflamingo was hysterical. Ace wanted nothing more than to scream at Luffy through the screen, whilst Doflamingo wanted to cling to his dear son and kiss his adorable cheeks for his little alliance act. A shattered wine bottle was on the ground, and Ace's hand was dripping with the red liquid he had been drinking.

"Ace, calm down, yoi.." Marco murmured soothingly, pulling Ace into a firm hug. "Luffy may be stupid, but he's strong."

"Marco.." Ace whimpered, hugging the man back tightly. "If Luffy fails, he'll be shattered."

"I know." Marco cooed, shooting Doflamingo a look that said 'speak and you die'. Doflamingo's grin widened slowly, but he remained quiet. "Luffy will be picked."

"I hope so."

* * *

**Note: DOFFY, YOU ASSHOLE! xD**

**I had to rewrite this fucking chapter like 4999 times, because my laptop kept crashing & deleting the fucking chapter. So, sorry if it isn't that good. Okbye.**

**I hope you enjoyed. I'll check for spelling errors whenever, because I'm kinda tired right now & I _always _make mistakes when I'm tired.**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own _One Piece_, only my _own characters_.**

**Underneath The Waves.**

* * *

**Rating: M**

**Part: 3/?**

* * *

**NOTE:**** Hey guys! I want to get this story up to _at least _5 chapters soon, so this story may be updated more than '_Lost Secrets_'. I apologize, but I really enjoy writing this story and it's what keeps me calm. Something extremely bad happened today, so I need something that keeps me calm; I'm listening to Two Steps From Hell (LOVE THEIR MUSIC, OMFG!) whilst writing this, and holy shit, it gives me so many ideas._  
_**

**I hope you enjoy.**

**Grammar/spelling errors ahead~**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_

* * *

_"I know." Marco cooed, shooting Doflamingo a look that said 'speak and you die'. Doflamingo's grin widened slowly, but he remained quiet. "Luffy will be picked."_

_"I hope so."_

* * *

The next few days were spent preparing, and Luffy felt like he had grown closer to Law over the past few days. The pair had come up with a routine, and they stuck to it; Law had stated that a routine was needed in order to survive, and Luffy had enthusiastically agreed with him, much to Law's amusement. Luffy laid in bed, his arm wrapped around Law's waist as usual, and his legs tangled with Law's legs. At first, Luffy had tried to keep his distance from Law in bed, but soon found that the man was practically a human radiator; he was also comfy to use as a pillow.

"Mm, Monkey-ya.." Law groaned, pulling the boy closer to his chest. Luffy whimpered in response, but nestled closer to Law's body. They had overslept a little, but Luffy could act innocent with Law, and hope for the best. However, that didn't stop him from looking at Law's tattoos. They were beautiful, but Law was so self conscious over them, and often hid his chest and back from Luffy as much as he could. There was a crossed out smiley face on the centre of his chest, and Luffy wondered why it was crossed out. Luffy slowly slipped his hand into Law's hand, and rolled onto his side, facing away from Law so he could look at the tattoos on Law's hand.

**_D.E.A.T.H_**

Luffy shivered softly at the letters, and rubbed a gentle circle on the back of Law's hand. He wanted to get to know Law, he wanted to have Law as his... _friend_, and he wanted Law to trust him. Luffy narrowed his eyes and gingerly pressed a kiss to each of Law's fingers. The man barely flinched, he instead flexed his hand and moaned. Luffy froze, wondering if he had awoken Law. After a few minutes, Law yawned and lowered his free hand to run through Luffy's bed head.

"Mm.." Luffy moaned, lifting his head to get more attention. Law continued his ministrations, pulling Luffy closer again. A pair of lips brushed against his cheek and Luffy shivered, he didn't know why; but, whenever Law touched him, it sent waves of heat over Luffy, and he wanted the man to touch him more. "Law.." Luffy sighed in content.

"Yes?" Luffy mewled in surprise, but nestled closer to Law's body, wanting more attention from the man. "My, you _are _cute, aren't you?"

"Law.." Luffy curled up at Law's side, his eyes closing in content. Law chuckled and continued petting Luffy, treating him as if he were the most precious thing in space and time. "Law, how long will it take to get to the mountain?"

"In our minds, where we are now, it'll take about two weeks to get there. In reality, it'd take longer." Law replied softly and Luffy smiled, nodding once.

"What's it like? The mountain?"

"Do you believe in Heaven, Monkey-ya?" Luffy shook his head slowly. "Well, imagine your dream place hidden away from you on top of that mountain, where it seems torturous and harsh, when in reality; it's beautiful."

"That doesn't explain much. I'll go ask Kidd." Law growled and pulled Luffy closer to his chest, clearly disliking that statement. "Nn- Law, can't breathe-!"

"Good." Law muttered childishly, pulling Luffy even closer. Luffy whimpered and squirmed against Law's grip, yelping when the man's legs tangled themselves with Luffy's even more.

"Law, seriously-!" Luffy whined, peeling his eyes open to weakly glare at Law, who was surprisingly pouting and nestling into Luffy's hair. "Get off-!"

"No."

"La-!"

"No."

"FINE THEN!"

"Mm." Luffy felt like punching Law, put could hardly move an inch in his current position. Law was being childish, a rare sight, and Luffy knew he could use it to his advantage at a later date. However, for now, he'd have to put up with Law's sulking and wait until the man got up, before he bolted to find Kidd. That being said, he didn't know how long Law was going to sulk for; _boy_, he was going to be in for a surprise.

* * *

_Thud!_

The sound of dices hitting a wooden table filled the almost silent inn, a pale hand covered the dices, sharp nails accompanied that hand; looking ready to claw out anybody's eye. A pudgy man stood across from the purplenette, looking rather smug about his bet. The purplenette lifted his hand, revealing two fives; not one four and one two.

"That's a shame." He murmured slyly, licking his lipstick stained lips slowly. The pudgy man let out a horrified gasp, backing up, but the boy was too quick and formed several seals with his hands. Card-like walls surrounded the man, trapping him in quickly, surprising most of the bar. "Don't run, sir." He sniggered and grinned widely, his smile was inhuman and it scared anyone who could see it.

"Let me out, you damn brat-!"

"Shinu." The boy interrupted, and with an ear piercing shriek, crimson red blood splattered out of the walls, staining the walls with the horrible liquid. The walls disappeared with a wave of the boys hand, and before anyone could kick him out for murder, he left the building. The boy heaved a sigh, people were getting unluckier and unluckier by the day, it seemed the only people who could defeat him were; Joker, Heart and Eyeless.

"My, you've been on a killing spree, recently!" a cheerful voice cooed from behind, and the boy came to a stop.

"Hm." He turned and smirked at the flamboyant man with the insane grin. "It's been a while, Joker."

"Fufufu~ Why don't you just use my real name, boia~?" Joker replied calmly, chuckling when the boy simply rolled his eyes.

"It's too risky, you know that. What do you want?"

"Hai, hai, pushy as always. I need you to preform something for me~" Joker walked forwards, and the boy held his ground, refusing to run from his superior. It would always end up with the boy being punished, anyway's, so he knew better than to run. Joker raised a hand and gently ruffled the boy's hair, before pulling him closer, letting him hide in the man's warmth for a moment or so.

"What is it?" the boy asked quietly, gripping the hem of his own shirt tightly. He could feel himself trembling, but he didn't dare pull away from the older man, he didn't want to make him angry, after all.

"I need you to kill these people." Joker purred, before he slipped a piece of paper in the boy's jacket and chuckled. "Fufufu~ I'm sure you will find a way to kill them, slowly and painfully, boia. Take your time, I want them to be in as much pain as possible."

"Hai.." the boy murmured shakily. Before he could ask any more questions, Joker was gone in the next howl of the wind, leaving the boy to struggle with his thoughts. He could kill these people, but he couldn't.. he killed for himself, and nobody else. However, he couldn't disobey Joker, because _he _would be the one laying on the ground dead, _not _Joker's targets.

* * *

Meanwhile, Luffy and Law had eventually come to an agreement; Luffy would go to Law if he had any questions, nobody else, and Law would teach Luffy the basics of swordsmanship. Luffy and Law had packed their belongings already, and were heading towards the exit of the city.

"Monkey-ya, as soon as we exit the city, we're in enemy territory." Law stated calmly, not seeming all that bothered that they could potentially _die_. "We have to work together, and if one of us in danger; the other _must _listen, no matter what."

"Hai, hai." Luffy replied enthusiastically, smiling. Law narrowed his eyes with a small smile, before he turned back to the wooden steps that looked like they were falling apart.

"Somebody else has been through here." Law murmured, glancing about cautiously. "Maybe about an hour or so, but they're moving quickly."

"How can you tell?" Law paused, before he laughed; it sounded fake and sheepish, earning a sceptical look from Luffy.

"It's natural! Just guessing!" Law was acting weird, so Luffy simply continued walking. Luffy knew _he_ was weird, but there was weird and then there was _weird_. "Oi, Monkey-ya! Wait up!"

"Hurry up, old man."

"I'M ONLY A FEW YEARS OLDER THAN YOU!"

"Hai, hai, whatever; _old man_." Luffy knew he was pissing Law off, and it was only confirmed when a fist connected with his head. Luffy let out a shout of pain, and brought his hands to his head, whilst Law snorted in amusement and glared down to him smugly. Luffy and Law jumped up the steps, watching the beasts slowly crawl forwards, growling and hissing at them.

"We have to run without stopping, understand?" Law snapped, suddenly serious. Luffy gulped and nodded, Law shifted into a position that'd allow him to sprint with enough speed to outrun these creatures, and Luffy did the same; though, he reckoned he was going to be slower than Law. "On three?"

"Un.." Luffy nodded once and gritted his teeth. He was trembling, but he didn't know if it was from fear or excitement; possibly a mix of both. Law slowly began counting down, before he reached one and the pair took their first steps out of the safety of the city. They were instantly sprinted at by beasts on all sides, and Luffy staggered as he tried to keep up with Law, who was running as if he had done this a million times. '_Then again, Law has a lot of knowledge of this map, perhaps he **has **done this a million_ _times_.'

"Monkey-ya!" Law shouted, snapping Luffy out of his thoughts. Luffy felt the air change behind him, and before he could move, Law had jumped behind him, staggering slightly as he pushed Luffy forwards. "Don't get lost in your thoughts, baka!"

"Ha-Hai!" Luffy cried, forcing himself to sprint. He didn't have that girl's protection now, he had to outrun these things alone, on his own energy and power. Law was there, but the man probably wanted to test his abilities; so, he was going to keep them both alive. A beast skidded to a stop in front of the pair, and Law grasped his arm, quickly dragging Luffy off to the side. "Why-?!"

"Monkey-ya, you are hardly able to read a person's aura, let alone an animal's!" Law snarled and Luffy felt his anger spike. Was Law stating he was incapable of fighting a damn dog?

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Luffy shouted, earning a frustrated look from Law.

"You couldn't read that girl's aura, and you can't read mine or Eustass-ya's!" Law barked, still dragging Luffy alone. Luffy gritted his teeth and looked away. It wasn't worth it, it wasn't worth it. He'd prove Law wrong, he was going to learn how to read an aura. Ace had said it was vital to learn it, too.

_"Luffy! If you can't learn this ability, you might as well give up on your dreams!"_

Is what Ace had told him. Luffy had tried for months and months after that, but he couldn't get the gist of it at all. Garp and Marco had laughed at him, and even Ace had laughed at him at some point. It was annoying, Luffy could tell a person that right now, but he wasn't going to give up; not for _anything_! The pair continued running, Luffy stuck close to Law, who seemed content with the silence.. this was Hell, he wanted nothing more than to scream at Law that he was a bastard and storm off, but he couldn't do that. Law would kill him, _literally_. The beasts gave up, eventually, but Law didn't stop running.

"Law!" Luffy cried from behind, panting heavily as he picked up his feet, trying to keep up with the man. "Law!" it never occurred to Luffy that he was being guided into a trap, a trap set by an extremely intelligent beast that could kill Luffy in seconds, so he fell into it's trap easily. The idiot.

* * *

In Law's point of view, the man was standing across from _her_. The hooded girl who had rescued Luffy, and beaten the crap out of Eustass. She looked ready to bolt from Law, and Law was ready to sprint after her; if anyone knew where Luffy was, it was her. Law didn't know why, but he felt like she had a connection with Luffy, a telepathic connection that had been there for a while.

"Why do you care for him?" they asked in unison. The girl balled her hands up into tight fists, and Law narrowed his eyes at her.

"What does he mean to you?" Law snapped, causing her to purse her lips. She eventually relaxed her hands and shrugged a slow, meek shrug. Law was surprised, he had expected her to try and run, yet she was just standing there.

"I'll answer your question, if you'll answer mine." She murmured and Law nodded after a moment. "Why do you care so much?"

"Monkey-ya just has _that _personality, ne? He just _draws _you to him, and holds you close; once you're his friend, he'll destroy anything in his path if you're hurt." Law replied calmly, he had other reasons; but he felt like this was the one that needed to be free. "Your turn."

"I just have a dream, that's all." She shifted her position, sighing. She sounded rather depressed and scared, and Law briefly wondered what her dream was.

"Really?"

"Un. Monkey D. Luffy is in the forest over there, by the way. He's being taken away by a Trickster, one of the ones who transform into a certain person and leads their prey into the darkness to kill them." Law felt his heart stop at the words, Luffy was going to be killed? "It's a rather weak one, but be careful."

"Arigatou." Was Law's reply, and the girl nodded once. "Oi!"

"Yes?"

"What _is _your dream?" Law asked curiously and the girl frowned, tucking her hands back into her pockets and sighing a low, deep sigh. Had he hit a nerve? He hoped he hadn't, she had given him a lot of information, and he'd feel like an asshole if he _had _upset her.

"_Freedom_." And with that, she was gone. Law felt his eyes soften, he wanted to know what she had been through to wish for such an impossible thing. Law caught one of the rose petals that she had left behind, it was black with a deep blue tint, and it reminded Law of the girl's outfit a little. She had been helpful, and Law was extremely grateful. Now, he was going to save Luffy. The idiot needed help, obviously; he should have taught Luffy swordsmanship _in _the city, but they would have wasted precious time if they had done that. Oh, the _struggles _of life.

* * *

**Note: Ohaidere.**

**The story is slowly progressing, yay. Guys, who should I ship Ace with (I just need Ace with somebody, okay? xD), should I have him be with Smoker (AYEEEE), but he "messes around" with Marco? Bcuz I think that'd be pretty interesting, not gonna lie.**

**I hope you enjoyed!**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own _One Piece_, only my _own characters_.**

**Underneath The Waves.**

* * *

**Rating: M**

**Part: 4/?**

* * *

**NOTE:**** Hey guys! So, I know I haven't updated anything in _ageeees_, but I've been distracted & I've been studying a lot, so.**

**SORTA IMPORTANT NOTE: Guys, I'm planning to delete my story 'Lost Secrets'; I just lost interest in it. It was good whilst it lasted, if you want to save the fanfiction, continue it & publish it elsewhere, then go right ahead. Just give me credit. I'm going to replace it with a College/Mafia!Fic for either LawLu or KiddLaw, or KiddLawLu. I don't know yet.**

**I hope you enjoy.**

**Grammar/spelling errors ahead~**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_

* * *

_The idiot needed help, obviously; he should have taught Luffy swordsmanship __in _the city, but they would have wasted precious time if they had done that. Oh, the _struggles _of life.

* * *

The forest was dense, and Luffy wondered where Law was taking him. Hadn't they gone far enough? They were far away from the beasts by now, why did they need to travel any further? Law seemed slightly off, too, he kept twitching and nervously looking over his shoulder. Luffy didn't question the strange attitude, and simply continued following his friend deeper into the deep, dark forest.

"W-We'll stop here.." Law stated, twitching as he spoke. Luffy looked down to see a deep, dark, rocky pathway. Before Luffy could protest, he had been shoved forwards and was rolling down the rocks. Sharp edges pierced his skin, ripping it away and leaving open wounds. Luffy let out whines and grunts of pain, before he came to a stop with a harsh thud.

"L-Law..?" Luffy whimpered, looking over his shoulder to try and locate his friend. His eyes scanned the area and before he could react, he was being picked up and placed on a flatter rock. Law stood in front of him, a large, twisted smile on his face. "Why are we down here?"

"Oh, you _are _stupid, aren't you?" Law cooed and Luffy felt his eyes widen in surprise. Law lifted his hand and softly caressed Luffy's cheek, before he guided Luffy's face closer to his own. "Your lover is panicking right now, you know? He's running through this forest, calling for you. I wonder what he'll do if I slit your throat?"

"L-Law, you're scaring me.." Luffy whined and Law's grin widened, before a long, thick, wet tongue licked along his lips. Luffy flinched away in disgust and surprise, there was a horrible, slimy liquid dripping down his chin. "Law-?!"

"Oh, stop calling me that _disgusting _name." 'Law' growled and backed up, before he collapsed down onto the stone floor. "Maybe I should keep you around, you look good.. scared and covered in saliva."

'_E-Eh?!_' Luffy felt his face light up in a blush, and he looked away from the older man. If this was a fake Law, who was it? And why was he reacting so stupidly to their words? Was it because they were impersonating _Law_?

"Ah, you're so cute." The man laughed, before his face became serious and he frowned deeply. "You know, it's been a while since I've eaten anything, and you look _incredibly _delicious."

"N-Nani?" Luffy shuffled away from the still man, tears threatening his eyes. He couldn't cry, not in front of Law; even if it wasn't Law. Luffy blinked quickly and glared at the man. "I'm not going to let you hurt me. I'm going to pass this test."

"Ho-oh~?" the man cooed, looking amused. "I'll be damned if you escape me, kid." Luffy narrowed his eyes and stopped trying to shuffle backwards, he balled his hands up into tight fists and looked away. "Oh, are you going to fight me?"

'_How did he-?!_' Luffy froze, had the man read his aura, or whatever? The man's eyes narrowed as he laughed, he fell backwards and brought a hand to his forehead, grinning widely at Luffy's realization.

"Ah, you figured it out, huh?" he sniggered and Luffy stared, bewildered by the thought of it. How could somebody predict his thoughts through a simple aura? "Kid, you should learn to control your aura, it's all over the place at the moment."

"How do you control-?!"

"Willpower." The man interrupted calmly, his grin widening somehow. "Or 'Haki', as some people call it."

"Eh? How do you control _willpower_?" Luffy questioned in confusion, the man chuckled and stood up, beginning to advance towards the confused Luffy. "It's something you _can't _control."

"How do you think everyone survives these tests?" the man cooed, and Luffy shrugged. "Exactly, they use Haki. If they don't use it, they can't survive the next tests."

"I can't use Haki, though-!"

"_Everyone _can use Haki." The man gripped Luffy's chin tightly, his touch was colder than Law's, and Luffy felt his strength slowly slip from his body. "You just need to learn the way of how your energy flows, and how it can become your power."

"E-Eh..?" Luffy felt drowsy, and his consciousness was indeed slipping. The man chuckled softly, leaning closer and closer, until he was inches away from the teenager's face. '_I feel.._'

_CRASH!_

Luffy and the man jumped at the sudden noise, and the man jumped back as a blade whizzed towards his head. Luffy shivered and fell backwards, his back hitting the rocks beneath him. He nervously tilted his head to the side, spotting the greenette from before, Zoro.

"Marimo!" an angry voice shouted, before the blonde teen appeared at Zoro's side. "Where are-?!"

"Shut _up_." Zoro hissed at the blonde and said blonde narrowed his visible eye, before he turned to face Luffy. His anger disappeared from his face, and he stared at Luffy in surprise. "Are you going to help me, Ero-Cook?"

"Y-Yeah." Sanji agreed meekly. Luffy couldn't move, the man who was disguised as Law stood with an angry snarl pulling at his lips. Zoro walked forwards, his light steps echoing throughout the smallish cave. Sanji followed after the greenette, heading towards Luffy carefully.

"Get away from him!" the man shouted in rage, jumping to stop Sanji from getting any closer. However, Zoro bolted in front of the man, blocking his limbs with two katana's. Zoro skidded backwards, but held his ground against the man, whilst Sanji bolted forwards to assist Luffy.

"Are you okay?" Sanji hissed, gripping Luffy's slender arms tightly. Luffy whimpered in response, and Sanji glanced over his shoulder briefly, before he bent over Luffy and slapped something away. "Come on." Sanji scooped Luffy up from the rocks, holding him like a father would hold his child. Luffy weakly wrapped his arms around Sanji's neck, one of his legs were being held up by Sanji's hand, and the other arm was hooked around Luffy's frail build.

"Get out!" Zoro ordered coldly, and Sanji tightened his hold on Luffy's body, before he began running towards the exit. Luffy and Zoro's eyes met briefly, and Luffy almost wanted to scream at Sanji to stop, but Zoro turned away and resumed holding the other man back. Luffy opted for nestling into Sanji's shoulder, tightening his hold on the blonde.**  
**

'_Law.._' Luffy thought sadly, wondering where the man was. Sanji jumped out of a hole in the ground, and landed with a gentle thud. Sanji didn't move, he simply gasped in surprise. In seconds, Luffy was being yanked from Sanji's arms, and he was being thrown over somebody's shoulder. "Sanji!" Luffy screamed in protest, flailing and kicking out in anger. He _hated _being manhandled, even if Ace did it a lot; that was _Ace_, it was part of his personality.

_Swish!_

Before either of them could react, Luffy was being carried away from the scene. Luffy could hear Sanji's screams of protest, but the stranger didn't stop, they simply continued running. Luffy stopped protesting after a while, gripping the yellow fabric beneath his hands tightly. After a few minutes, Luffy was thrown into some tall grass and a slender body was on top of him, two hands on either side of his head. Luffy defiantly glared up to his attacker, but was surprised to see Law on top of him, heaving and flushed.

"You're safe.." he whispered, digging his fingers into the dirt beneath his hands. "You're safe." He repeated, pressing his lips to Luffy's forehead gently.

"L-Law?" Luffy shyly allowed his hands to wander over Law's sides, and onto his back. The smooth material of Law's nodachi was there, and Luffy let out a choked whimper. Law pulled back to look at him, but was pulled back down into a tight grip. Luffy didn't mind the extra weight on top of him, he simply gripped Law's silky hair and wrapped his legs around Law's waist. Law supported some of his weight on his forearms, allowing Luffy to breathe in his scent. The duplicate hadn't had Law's scent, it had smelt of dirt and dead corpses. Law smelt of burning wood, and freshly cut grass.

"Monkey-ya." Law sounded more relieved now, and Luffy felt his heartbeat pick up at the sound. "We should get moving."

"Un.." Luffy whimpered, nodding into Law's neck carefully. The pair got up and Luffy shyly held onto Law's hand, not daring to look up from the ground. Law seemed surprised by the gesture, but tangled his fingers with Luffy's and squeezed. They began walking through the grass, Luffy clinging to Law and Law guiding the younger teen. Luffy had never been so close to another person before, he had been clingy with Ace, but had outgrown all of it; at home, all he did was eat, sleep and train. Law seemed like the sort of person who kept out of the way, and read books and made maps, or something. It was surprising how they were completely different, yet they _clicked _so well.

* * *

Several hours later, Law and Luffy had managed to travel a few miles, without running into any more trouble. It was beginning to get dark, so Law suggested finding a place to set up their camp, which Luffy agreed to rather meekly. They were now sitting under a tree, a low fire crackling in front of them. The flames danced as they cooked the raw food, some embers drifted upwards, entrancing Luffy. He had never been so close to an open fire, not for a long time.

"I'm so glad you're safe." Law muttered suddenly, and Luffy shifted his attention to the older man. "You have no idea how scared I was."

"Law.." Luffy didn't sound like his usual, confident self. He sounded surprised and confused, surprising himself even more. Luffy turned to face the man, kneeling with a small smile on his face. "Shishishi, Law's capable of feeling emotions."

"Urusai!" Law barked playfully and Luffy giggled, shuffling closer to Law boldly. He wrapped his arms around Law's shoulders, kissing the man's cheek cutely. Law's face lit up in a blush, and he looked away quickly. "Monkey-ya, don't ever leave my side." Law carefully pulled Luffy into his side, kissing his cheek in response.

"I won't leave you." Luffy promised quietly, nestling into Law's side softly. They were silent for several minutes, and Luffy felt strangely comfortable in the silence. He carefully lowered his head to Law's lap, ignoring the startled hand in his hair, before he closed his eyes and fell asleep. Law relaxed after a moment, threading Luffy's hair softly through his fingers. It was soothing, and helped Luffy sleep. He hadn't been touched affectionately in a long, long time; it impacted him a lot, and made him want to cry. Ace had been affectionate once, and then Luffy had began growing up and it had all stopped. They rarely spoke to each other any more, actually, and when they did; it was awkward and unloving. '_Law.._' was Luffy's last conscious thought, before he fell asleep completely.

* * *

Meanwhile, in reality, the Four Elites all sat in their assigned seats. Ace was gazing at the screen in front of him, like the other three, with a horrified expression. The room was dark, and the only source of light was from the glowing screens, giving the room an eerie chill. Ace had seen rebellious participants in the past, but this was bigger than anything he'd seen before. This was the chilling breeze before a tornado.

On the screen in front of him, was something that could only be seen as treason. The setting was an opening in a forest, where several rocks were. It was dark, but the fake moonlight provided enough light to show the haunting words. Several bodies were hanging from trees, horrible things had been done to them, and their blood was used to write the sentence:

**_BURN IN HELL_**

The blood had dripped down the rocks, merging into another letter. Nobody had seen who had wrote the threat, and nobody had any guesses as to who _could have_ possibly wrote it. Marco had said that they couldn't go making blind guesses, because it would get more people killed. The others had agreed, whilst Ace had disagreed; if they waited around, who _knows _what could happen? A rebellion could break out, for all they knew.

"Ace." Marco's hand came down to ruffle Ace's ebony locks, and Ace gazed over to his superior. "Don't worry, yoi. We'll figure out who it is before the next test."

"They're discreet, Marco. They _won't _be caught easily, they made sure they were in _and _out of the place, before the cameras picked up on them. You won't catch them before the next test." Ace denied and Marco's beautiful eyes narrowed, before he sighed.

"Ace-_nii _is right." A shy voice whispered from the other side of the room, surprising all of them. "If they wanted to be caught, they would be more indiscreet. They'd make it obvious."

"Well, we can't do much." A second voice groaned, followed by the creaking of a chair. "We'll have to wait to see what they do, ne?"

"Yeah, and risk everyone's lives." Ace agreed sarcastically, earning a yawn from the quieter voice.

"Luffy-_kun _will be all right, he's with Law-_kun_."

"THAT'S _EXACTLY _WHAT I'M WORRIED ABOUT!" Ace squawked, standing up to strangle the younger one. Marco held the struggling Ace away from the other two, smiling innocently.

"I'm sure your brother will be quite willing, if anything happens, yoi."

"WHAT'D YOU SAY?!"

* * *

**Note: Yay, fluffiness. Not much happened here, but I swear, it helps the plot build.**

**I didn't want Law to save Luffy, because I felt like it'd be _too _obvious, so I made it Zoro & Sanji. And then thieving Law came in. NO REGRETS. xD**

**I hope you enjoyed! I'll check for spelling errors at some point, I'm depressed & haven't been sleeping properly, so I'm _sure _there'll be a lot of mistakes.**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own _One Piece_, only my _own characters_.**

**Underneath The Waves.**

* * *

**Rating: M**

**Part: 5/?**

* * *

**NOTE:**** Hey guys! So, I'm updating because I was listening to John Dreamer (and a lot of Vocaloid).. and his music inspired me to write this chapter a little quicker, so here!**

**I hope you enjoy!**

**Grammar/spelling errors ahead~**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_

* * *

_"I'm sure your brother will be quite willing, if anything happens, yoi."_

_"WHAT'D YOU SAY?!"_

* * *

Law had always had a passionate hate towards water, it sent shivers down Law's back, and turned him into a whimpering mess. He hated the first test for this reason; it included _a lot _of water, especially if you were thrown into a river at the start of the test; which Law had luckily avoided. Law sighed and looked down to Luffy, who was jumping up and down cheerfully, demanding that they get a boat; like a few others were doing. Sadly, it wasn't just Luffy and Law who had had the idea of travelling across the ocean.

"Ne, Law, is it really safe to travel this way?" Luffy asked curiously, and Law sighed softly. There _was _another way to get to the next island, but it meant risking your life by fighting against evil creatures; rumours had spread that one of the Four Elites had taken that route, and had left the route in ruins. It was horrifying, since Law had heard that the route could stand a nuclear missile if hit with one; Law wondered how powerful the Four Elites really were. "Ne~?"

"Yes, it's safe." Law confirmed and Luffy brightened up, nodding. Law began walking again, and Luffy skipped after him. The pair took their time finding a ship, before Law found one that held a lower deck, so they could shelter from any storms if needed. Luffy sat on the ship, helping Law lift crates of food and supplies onto the deck. "Monkey-ya, remember that this way will take a little longer."

"Ah, so there _is _another route?" Luffy grinned, and Law jumped up onto the ship, grabbing Luffy by the scruff and pulling him with him. "Itai! Nani?!"

"We will not take the other route, understand?" Law hissed and Luffy scowled defiantly, before he pouted and nodded. "Good." Law pulled Luffy closer, pressing his lips to the boy's forehead softly, before he walked towards the stern of the ship. Law was unsure as to why he kept kissing Luffy, and just generally touching him, but didn't question it; it was probably because Luffy was younger than him, and Law wanted to protect him from this torture, right? .. Right?

"Law~" Luffy whined suddenly, and Law looked back down to see the boy pointing to something. Law turned in the direction he was pointing, to see a large wave heading their way. Law's eyes widened and he quickly spoke up.

"Monkey-ya, lower the sail!" he shouted and Luffy was quicker than light, clearly trusting Law's instinct. Law had seen this wave before, it held nothing but death, and Law was sure Luffy could feel the tense aura that replaced Law's calm, content one. The sail dropped down with a heavy noise of fabric hitting the air, and Law quickly untied the rope holding the ship to land. Luffy pulled the anchor up and the boat swiftly began moving, sailing away from the dock and wave swiftly. It wasn't long before they were in open water, a few other boats were around them; but not a lot.

"Law..?" Luffy wandered back to the stern, only to be thrown forwards by the force of the wave hitting the land. Law caught Luffy by the wrist, holding him from falling overboard; screams could be heard from the dock, and Luffy's eyes widened in horror, whilst Law - and any other old timers - lowered his head, looking away from the scene. This had happened over and over again, the world didn't care about the participants; they just wanted to see blood and death. "O-Oi.." Luffy staggered a little, clearly horrified by the noises and sight. Then, Luffy said something that threw Law completely off guard. "Law, we should go help them."

"No." Law replied bluntly, causing Luffy to whip around and glare up to him.

"Why not?!" he shouted, yanking his arm free from Law's grip. Law allowed him to do so, watching the anger and fear print its mask onto Luffy's face. "They're people just like us, we can't just leave them!"

"Yes, we can." Law replied, angering Luffy even more, but Law continued. "This happens every year, Monkey-ya, it's their way of amusing the audience. There is _nothing _we can do about it, we are nothing more than puppets to them, they can kill us whenever they like!" Luffy froze in surprise, looking up to Law with confused eyes. Luffy had clearly had an incredibly sheltered life, since just about any participant knew this; whether they be new or old. "It's better to just move on, than risk our lives going back to help strangers."

"Everyone is just scared!" Luffy shouted after a moment of silence, and everything around them came to a standstill. People in their boats stopped to look over to the pair, and Law almost felt like screaming at them to fuck off, but kept quiet to listen to Luffy. "Everyone just falls in line, and whenever a superior orders us around, we run to get what they need." Luffy's voice was trembling with hate by now, and Law could hardly look away from those piercing eyes, his eyes narrowed at Luffy carefully.

'_He isn't your average sheltered kid.._' Law thought, holding Luffy's glare surprisingly well. Luffy was defiant, and Law liked that, it made being his ally even more fun; though, it was probably going to come and give them karma soon enough.

"I _won't _bow to anyone, I'll surpass them." Luffy hissed, surprising Law even more. He watched Luffy storm off to sit down on the deck, and Law felt his face heat up; it took him a moment to realize he was blushing. The ships around them began moving again, but their lingering stares didn't leave; they were clearly expecting Luffy to kill Law for his blunt answers, but Law knew Luffy wouldn't do that; he would _never _hurt his friends, after all.

* * *

The waves rocked the boat about softly, and Luffy still hadn't spoken a single word to Law. Law sat in the small kitchen their boat had, biting into an apple with a worried expression on his face. Luffy hadn't come downstairs, nagging Law for food; had Law _really _upset Luffy that much?

_CRASH!_

A loud crash, followed by the heavy rocking of the boat, caught Law's attention. Law was quickly on his feet and was up the stairs in seconds, his half eaten apple left on the table behind him. When he walked out onto the deck, Luffy stood on the railing, laughing as a large beast crashed downwards into the water.

"Monkey-ya?!" Law shouted in horror, his eyes almost bulging out of their sockets as Luffy rubbed his mildly bruised fist.

"Ah, Law!" Luffy turned and ran up to the man, throwing his arms around Law's neck. Law caught the hyper boy and threaded his fingers through Luffy's silky hair, holding him close.

"What the hell are you doing?" Law hissed and Luffy giggled, nestling closer to Law's neck.

"Protecting the ship~" a bead of sweat rolled down Law's head, and he scooped Luffy up, allowing the boy to hook his legs around Law's waist. Law carried Luffy over to the edge of the ship, watching the blood surface slowly; Luffy had knocked out a huge beast, with only his fists.. that was rather amazing.

"Where did you learn that?" Law asked curiously and Luffy giggled again.

"Niisan taught me!" Luffy grinned, and Law sighed; he was grateful, since they would have been forced to fight together if Luffy hadn't done what he did; and Law wasn't willing to fight with somebody else, it just sounded like torture.

"Let's go to bed, Monkey-ya." Law murmured and Luffy nodded, allowing Law to carry Luffy downstairs. Their usual routine took place: Luffy switched clothes at lightning speed, Law teased his little ally with his shameless stripping, Luffy glared and crawled into Law's hammock and Law climbed in next to him.

"Law..?" Luffy asked nervously, looking up to the man as he tangled their legs together. Law hummed in response, threading his fingers through Luffy's hair once again. "Why did you say we can't go back to help.. _them_?" Law wasn't surprised by the question, he was simply surprised that Luffy hadn't asked him sooner.

"Well.." Law felt the hammock swing softly, soothing them both; the tense aura was slowly disappearing, thankfully. "Everyone has their reasons, Monkey-ya."

"Could you tell me yours at some point?" Luffy asked softly, wrapping his arm around Law's waist cautiously.

"Maybe someday." Law replied and Luffy nodded, before he relaxed and curled up into Law's side. The pair fell asleep rather easily, despite the sickening feeling of being so close to water, and Law was surprised he hadn't had a huge breakdown yet.

* * *

_THUD!_

A pained gasp filled the air, followed by an angry growl, cutting any protests off. Ace laid on his side, his usually cheerful expression replaced with a pained one. His body was injured to the point of it being fatal, and he momentarily wished he had never gotten involved with his younger brother, Luffy. However, that emotion was washed away with another wave of pain, and he felt a horrible taste fill his mouth; and before he could protest, he was vomiting blood all over the smooth, clean floor.

"Ace-_san_.." a dark, angry voice snarled, before a foot came down to the back of his head, pushing his face down into the pool of blood. "Your brother is adding more enthusiasm to this possible tornado, you know?" yes, he _did _know; however, that didn't mean he could stop Luffy from saying such stupid things. "You disgust me, seriously. How did trash like _you _become a member of the Four Elites, hm?"

'_Don't react.._' Ace thought, knowing the man above him just wanted a reaction. Ace felt his stomach bubble with rage, but he bit his tongue, allowing the man to yank his head back up. '_Don't react._'

"Oh? Nothing to say? You really _are _trash." The man hissed, earning a choked whimper from Ace. He couldn't do anything else, because it would end up with his friends and family shot in public. "What are you going to do, Ace-_san_?"

"I-I'll speak to Luffy." Ace whispered hoarsely, and the man chuckled a low, threatening chuckle.

"Oh no, you won't." The man growled, but before he could hurt Ace again; the door opened with a high, eerie creak. It slammed shut after a few footsteps, and the sound of clicking signalled it was locked. "What the hell do you want? This room is off limits."

"Gomenasai.." a quiet, shy voice apologized, and Ace's eyes widened in horror. Before anyone could react, the man was send staggering backwards, dropping Ace's head in the process. A young girl stood where the man had once been, her posture was perfect and her breathing was even; she had intended to come to this room, and she had intended to pick a fight if she needed to. "You got hurt, Ace-_nii_." She whispered, and Ace's mood brightened a little._  
_

"I'm fine." Ace promised and the girl nodded once, before she turned her attention back to the approaching man once again.

"You're angry because Luffy-_kun _destroyed your code, and called us cowards; that is treason to people of great importance, ne?" she asked softly, but her voice held a dark, taunting edge to it.

"How do you know that, kid?" the man snapped and Ace could practically _feel _the change in her expression, she went from smiling to an enraged glare, with a cold frown on her face.

"Why else would you hurt Ace-_nii_? He hasn't done anything." The girl muttered, bringing her hands to her sides, where her coins were. "Luffy-_kun _has done multiple things that could be seen as treason, on the other hand. Since you cannot touch Luffy-_kun_, you will take it out on Ace-_nii_. Therefore, it is quite obvious that you are angry." The man let out an almost inaudible gasp of surprise, before he let out a long 'oh?'

"So, you're the one who _really _took the title of 'Intelligence', hm?" he asked tauntingly, but the girl didn't react as he wanted her to; she simply remained silent and took out her coins. Ace could see from the dim lighting that it was a silver coin, one that held a bear on one side, and a mermaid on the other.

"Heads or tails, sir?" she whispered, placing the coin in her hands swiftly. The man snorted in surprise, and Ace felt like grinning; but he refrained from doing so, since it'd _really _give away the fact she was going to threaten him.

"Heads.." the man replied after a moment, and the coin was flipped. Unsurprisingly, it was heads, and a soft light appeared in between the pair. The light transformed into a tall white bear, who wore an orange boiler suit and a pair of black boots. "Nani?!"

"Miss.." the bear greeted sheepishly, and Ace felt a bead of sweat roll down the back of his head. This bear _never _seemed to have any self confidence, and it was quite surprising; considering he was a brilliant martial artist, and always loved being summoned.

"Bepo." The girl greeted in response, and Bepo began apologizing, causing another bead of sweat to roll down the back of Ace's head. "Bepo, if that guy makes a move to attack me and Ace-_nii_, knock him out."

"Ha-Hai!" Bepo squeaked and turned to the man, who seemed absolutely horrified. "G-Gomenasai!" he apologized, bowing sheepishly. The girl turned to Ace and she crouched down, revealing her almost always hidden face; it was hidden under a white masquerade mask over her eyes, just to keep some of her face hidden.

"Ace-_nii_, come on." She muttered, grabbing Ace's arm softly and helping him up. The pair began making their way towards the door, and unsurprisingly; the man tried to stop them, resulting in him being knocked out by Bepo. "Arigatou, Bepo."

"Y-You're welcome.." before the bear could disappear again, the girl spoke up.

"Bepo, I'm sure you'll get to meet Law-_kun _this year, ne? He's probably going to be in my group." Bepo brightened up at the sentence, and nodded, before disappearing into a ball of light. Ace smiled a small smile, she was so nice to her familiars; they all respected the young girl, and had even stated in the past that they'd protect her with their lives. "You're smiling, you _must _be fine." The girl grumbled, guiding Ace through the corridors; sadly, they ran into Marco.

"What happened, yoi?" Marco barked at them, and a bead of sweat rolled down the pair's cheeks. "Oi, brat."

"Nothing happened." The girl replied quickly, and Ace nodded enthusiastically in agreement. Marco raised an eyebrow and walked forwards, causing the pair to back up.

"You sure? You seem pretty nervous." Marco cooed, coming to a stop slowly. The pair began nodding together, laughing nervously. "Brat, what did you do?" Marco snapped at the girl, and Ace tensed, had Marco noticed the way she had become out of breath? That was the downside of summoning familiars; if somebody summoned one alone, they would become slightly out of breath. However, summoning multiple would result in the the person being immobile for a while. Since this girl was one of the Four Elites, she was able to summon multiple, but used it as a last resort; if she used it against a powerful enemy too soon, she would become immobile and die.

"Why are you accusing me of doing something?" the girl asked sheepishly, sounding a bit like Bepo.

"You rarely become out of breath, since you are known for your athletic body. However, when you summon a familiar, you become out of breath, yoi." The girl pulled a face that held an expression between horrified and dumbfounded, causing Marco to smirk widely. "So, what did you do?"

"Um.." the girl paused, suddenly letting Ace go and running up to Marco, throwing her arms around his waist. "Marco-_nii_! Ace-_nii _was fighting again, and he dragged me into it!" she wailed loudly, looking up to him with the classic lip quiver. "Gomen ne!"

"OI!" Ace screamed in horror, pointing at the little traitor. He was getting ready to slap the brat, how could she do that?! He should have seen it coming, really, since she was practically Marco's little sister from how well they got along. "You damn traitor!"

"Marco-_nii_~!"

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU, BRAT!"

"You two are worse than children, yoi."

"URUSAI!"

* * *

**Note: So, um, this chapter is sorta all over the place. However, it _does _help the plot progress, so, um.. ye.**

**I wanted to add that last bit in because I just felt like it was needed, from such a serious LawLu moment. I'm also depressed still, so I just needed to make myself laugh a little. So ye.**

**I hope you enjoyed.**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own _One Piece_, only my _own characters_.**

**Underneath The Waves.**

* * *

**Rating: M**

**Part: 6/?**

* * *

**NOTE:**** Hey guys! Sorry for the long wait, again. I decided that I should probably update, so here.**

**Oh, by the way, I put the last scene with LawLu as my little 'reminder' for the previous chapter, since my laptop refused to cooperate. I also think it looks better than the last scene.**

**I hope you enjoy.**

**Grammar/spelling errors ahead~**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_

* * *

_The pair fell asleep rather easily, despite the sickening feeling of being so close to water, and Law was surprised he hadn't had a huge breakdown yet._

* * *

The day was dark and gloomy, thunder rumbled through the sky and Luffy briefly wondered if they were _really _safe on the small boat. Law was curled up near the stern, stating that he disliked the water, and that curling up was a calming mechanism for him. Luffy was still tired from the previous night, it had been comfortable; yes, but there had been distant screams of obvious pain and fear, and it had scared Luffy into staying awake all night.

'_Law said we should be safe, if we look out for anything weird.. and avoid it.._' Luffy thought, gazing down at the ocean quietly. It was stained red from the drifting blood, and Luffy felt incredibly nervous with the thoughts in his mind. What if they crashed into whatever had killed the other participants? What if they were killed? Luffy didn't want to die, but if he was knocked off of the boat; he was as good as dead.

"Monkey-ya?" Law's low voice snapped Luffy out of his thoughts, and Luffy turned around slowly, facing his friend. "Is everything all right?"

"Yup!" Luffy confirmed, smiling widely. Law smirked a small smirk, and Luffy couldn't help but shiver; he didn't know why he reacted like this, it just.. _happened_. Luffy slowly turned back to the water, biting his bottom lip softly. He had a bad feeling about all of this, and he wanted nothing more than to speak to Law about it; but he felt like he couldn't, yet he didn't know _why_.

_CRASH!_

Luffy staggered backwards in surprise, looking upwards to see purple lightning. It looked angry, dangerous and _terrifying_, Luffy couldn't help the terrified whimper he let out; it _was _scary. Law had moved from his spot by the stern, and had come to a stop next to Luffy, looking equally as horrified as Luffy.

"What the hell..?" Law muttered and Luffy whipped around, surprised to find Law looking confused.

"E-Eh?! You don't know what _that _is?!" Luffy shouted in horror and Law shifted his gaze to Luffy, shaking his head a little. "Isn't it normal?!"

"No, it isn't." Law denied softly, shivering visibly as the boat rocked violently, the water trembling underneath the lightning. "Monkey-ya, this is probably what killed the others-!" Law was interrupted as a blue field drifted over them, a high pitch ringing filling their ears as the world fell silent. Luffy felt his consciousness slip a little, but Law shook him softly, keeping him awake. The water around them suddenly shook violently, the blue field disappearing swiftly.

"L-Law..?" Luffy looked up to Law in confusion, but Law looked horrified, a cold sweat on his skin. Law swallowed and staggered forwards, ignoring Luffy's hands on his hoodie, but he pushed him off when Luffy didn't allow him to go any further.

"You're kidding me.." Law whispered hoarsely, gripping the banister rail shakily. Luffy rushed up to his side, supporting Law's body with his own. Law seemed surprised by the gesture, but gripped onto Luffy's hoodie tightly, leaning on the boy.

"Law.. what is it?" Luffy asked softly, burying his face into Law's hoodie, taking in the man's scent. It calmed him down, and he managed to rub soothing circles into Law's back.

"Haoshoku Haki.." Law muttered and Luffy hummed in confusion, tilting his head up slowly. "It's a form of Haki, one that you _can't _learn; only one in a million people have it." Law explained, his voice was shaky and his tone sounded terrified. "In a basic explanation; it allows a person to dominate another person's will, rendering them into unconsciousness, and submission." Luffy didn't answer straight away, but when he did, his voice was as shaky as Law's.

"W-Why would somebody have the ability to do _that_?!" Luffy muttered, pulling away from Law slowly, allowing the man to relax on the rail behind him.

"Haoshoku Haki is a legend, something that was passed down to our generation.." Law explained softly, swallowing once again. "You don't have a choice in any of it, really. You can learn to control it, and protect yourself and others; or you can let it run wild, and hurt everyone around you." Luffy felt his eyes widen in surprise, Law seemed so calm and collected about it; even though he had just been panicking. "Monkey-ya, why do you think people hate these tests?"

"I-I.. because it changes people..?" Luffy replied, looking up to Law with panicky eyes.

"That's one of the reasons. Another.. is because people have become more abusive over their Haki abilities." Law bent down to Luffy, cupping his cheek carefully, brushing some of Luffy's ebony locks back. "Monkey-ya, promise me something.." Law moved closer to Luffy, until Luffy could feel Law's lips brushing against his own. "Don't _ever _abuse your abilities, please." Luffy flushed a bright red at the close distance, and balled his hands up into tight fists.

"I promise." Luffy whispered hoarsely and Law smiled a genuine smile, pulling away from Luffy's face carefully.

"Good, now.. we should keep an eye out for the person who used that Haki." Law stated, turning to walk off to the stern again. Luffy ran over to his side of the boat, kneeling with his arms in front of him.

'_Why did I react like that..?_' Luffy wondered once again, heaving a heavy sigh of confusion. '_Maybe I should speak to Law? No.. I'll probably chicken out._' Luffy glanced over his shoulder nervously, Law was gazing in his direction, his sharp eyes holding a predatory look to them. Luffy, once again, flushed in embarrassment and looked away; he heard Law chuckle a low, seductive chuckle and Luffy almost shouted 'urusai!' at him, but bit his tongue. Law would tease him if he did that, and Luffy _didn't _feel like explaining why he had acted so weirdly, because he _truly _didn't know.

* * *

Donquixote Doflamingo sat in a comfortable chair, reading the updates on the test. It was interesting, not just Law's progress, but also the hooded girl and a redhead. The girl had reached the last town already, and Doflamingo was _incredibly _interested in her; how had she moved so quickly in such a short amount of time? It was amazing. Law, on the other hand, had barely made any progess; if he hadn't made that _stupid _alliance, he would have caught up with the girl already. Doflamingo flipped over to Law's basic profile, heaving a frustrated sigh, the brat was _in for it _when he got out of there.

**_TRAFALGAR LAW._**

_Age - 24._

_Occupation - Surgeon trainee._

_Personality - Law is withdrawn from the other Elites, and has quite a blunt, antisocial behaviour. He can be charming and polite when needed, and is usually seen calmly smirking; he has quite a laidback personality, too. However, he seems to despise being ordered around, and has sharp bursts of anger whenever ordered about._

_Past/Present Alliances - Law has formed an alliance with Eustass Kidd in the past, and they both managed to get through three tests together, before they both failed in the final test. Currently, Law has an alliance with Monkey D. Luffy, a new Elite to the tests, they haven't betrayed each other; as of yet._

_Relationships - Eustass Kidd : Eustass Kidd is Law's friend, yet seems to hold a deep loathing for the older man, too. The pair throw sarcastic, rude and harsh comments back and forth, but are able to work together in serious situations._

_Mysterious__ Girl__ : This girl's name is unknown to even the Government, but Law seems to trust her. She hasn't shown any emotions around Law, other than a faint smile here and there; suggesting that she's comfortable around Law. The pair, in the past, have shown great teamwork between each other and seem to have a close bond._

_Monkey D.__ Luffy__ : Monkey D. Luffy seems to have quite a close bond with Law, even though they are only in an alliance. Luffy is often seen blushing or laughing at Law; Law has rescued the boy on multiple occasions, suggesting that Law cares deeply for their alliance. Not much is known about their alliance, or how it came about, but it is known that they have brilliant teamwork; as Luffy has a hyperactive personality, and Law is more serious, but they seem to be able to cooperate well._

_- Page 1 -_

Doflamingo narrowed his bright blue eyes under their glasses, trying to control his heavy breathing. So, that little brat has a decent friendship with the mysterious girl, huh? And Eustass Kidd, too? He hadn't known about this, because Law had often said that he found everyone annoying, and avoided them all; Doflamingo had stupidly believed the brat, and now he was paying the price for it.

_Knock!_

The door swung open before Doflamingo could tell the person to go away, and Vergo stood with a masked girl at his side; she had long white hair with two light blue streaks framing her face. She stood at around 5'3", and her outfit was made of material that suggested she was a killer of some kind; she could move around easily in her outfit, and not get caught from her cloak.

"Donquixote Doflamingo-_san_." She greeted monotonously, her eyes held a burning spark behind the white mask, and Doflamingo felt oddly uncomfortable around her. "The test is almost over, _ne_?"

"Hai, it is." Doflamingo replied as calmly as he could manage, and the girl's lips curved downwards into a frown. She pushed Vergo, one of Doflamingo's strongest men, away from the door and slammed her hand into the doorframe when he tried to step back into place. The wood cracked under her hand, and Vergo's mouth opened in surprise.

"Go away." She ordered and Vergo glanced over to Doflamingo, who sadly didn't get a say in it. "I wasn't asking." Vergo reluctantly turned and disappeared down the hallway, leaving the girl and Doflamingo alone. She stepped into the room, closing the door and leaning up against it.

"You have impeccable strength, my dear." Doflamingo replied, examining her for any flaws in her guard. It was flawless, the way she held her body, the way she moved it with only mild hesitation; she wasn't somebody who would be defeated easily. "May I ask how you have such a flawless defence and offense?"

"I went through Hell to get it." She replied calmly, folding her arms over her chest slowly. "I'm not here to talk about myself. Marco-_nii _would have come, but he has something else to take care of. Ace-_nii _is terrified to step into arms reach of you, and _he _is a fucking idiot, so I _hardly _trust him with somebody as dangerous as you, Doflamingo-_san_."

"Ah, you're one of the Four Elites?" The girl simply tilted her head, and Doflamingo chuckled a slow, disbelieving chuckle. "It's an _honour _to have you here, my dear."

"Yeah, well.. you're alone on that part, I'd rather go walk on burning coal than be here." She muttered and Doflamingo's grin widened slowly, becoming almost inhuman at it's size.

"That can be arranged."

"I'm sure it can." The girl narrowed her eyes cautiously, and Doflamingo saw her jaw shift, suggesting she had gritted her teeth. "Law-_kun _will pass this test, as will Luffy-_kun_." She stated and Doflamingo raised an eyebrow, how would such filth pass such a test, when he was currently sitting in a boat, sulking? "One participant has already reached the mountain, and is currently waiting for the remaining three."

"Oh? How interesting." Doflamingo chuckled, but the girl didn't smile or laugh, she simply sighed and rolled her eyes. '_She **must **be in a bad mood._'

"Law will betray _them_." She stated and Doflamingo felt his grin drop, his eyes widening in surprise, confusion and horror. "After his team is confirmed, he will continue to grow stronger, until betrayal is his only escape."

"How do you know? The future can change." Doflamingo replied shakily, but he had a feeling the girl was more than right.

"Yes, the future _can _change. However, everyone seeks power to a certain extent, and it will drive people into doing insane stuff." She replied and Doflamingo fully agreed with her, she was intelligent and Doflamingo liked that. He hadn't met many brats who could keep up with adult thoughts, and explain them in an almost flawless manner. "Monkey D. Luffy.. he has a tough future, as he will be challenged by those he trusts."

"I don't care about that brat." Doflamingo snarled, but it felt as if she could see right through his acts. He _did _care about Luffy to a certain extent, since Law seemed to care about him more than anything, and Doflamingo just wanted Law to be happy; no matter _how _he acted with the boy.

"Well, whatever." The girl stepped away from the door, heaving a frustrated sigh. "I don't care about your reasons for attacking Ace-_nii_, just stay away from the Four Elites and the participants, or I _will _kill you." Suddenly, it felt like _everything _was crashing down on Doflamingo, she had figured it out? How..? He could see specks of white in his vision, was he breaking down? No, it felt like something was burning inside of him. He was getting threatened by a kid, one of the Four Elites who thought they were invincible, just because they had defeated the tests.

"You brat!" Doflamingo acted without thinking, he jumped forwards, ready to strangle the girl; but she simply stepped to the side with an attitude that said she was confident. Doflamingo turned, moving to grab the girl, but she rammed her elbow into his gut and knocked him off balance. She jumped forwards speedily, unsheathing what looked like a small dagger, and placed the tip to Doflamingo's neck, daring him to make a move. The silence was unbearable, it was tense and taunting, Doflamingo could hardly breathe; he _hated _being ordered around by overconfident brats, but this girl.. she was different from the previous ones, she wasn't overly confident; she didn't make wasted moves, she was the one who worked all of the strings behind the scenes. _She was like him_.

"I _despise _puppets who can't follow their fucking orders." She hissed, slicing the silence in half sharply. Doflamingo narrowed his eyes, so she had the same mind set as him; she wasn't playful or childish, like she had acted at meetings, she wasn't shy and boring like she had acted a few minutes ago. She was a dangerous puppeteer, who planned her movements carefully and quickly, slyly causing her enemies to slip up. She saw people as puppets, and made them dance how she wanted.

'_How interesting.._' Doflamingo thought, slowly backing away from the small dagger. "I'll stay away from you." Doflamingo promised and the girl remained silent for a moment, before she slowly lowered her arms from their defensive position and sheathed her dagger. She stood with her arms at her sides, her hands relaxed and calm. "However, you have to promise me something, too."

"What do you want, Donquixote Doflamingo?" she murmured, seeming to have calmed down a little from her sudden burst.

"You must do _everything _in your power to prepare Law, and to keep him from straying onto the wrong path." The silence was, once again, unbearable and Doflamingo briefly wondered if she was going to back down; but she answered.

"I cannot promise the last part, since Law-_kun _has a _very _unpredictable mind set. However, I will prepare Law-_kun _as much as I can, and will keep him in the tests until he's beyond his limit." She promised and Doflamingo's grin appeared slowly, he was glad she was going to be cooperative; however, he also knew that this was going to lead to betrayal. He didn't know how, but since they were probably thinking the same thing, they were probably going to go so far; before betraying each other. "Well, I have to go.." she turned and began walking, seeming like her bored self again. "Even though all I'll do is sleep.. and leave everyone else with my paperwork.. I'm a good person.." she snatched the papers containing the profile's, and opened the door. "Ja ne." And with that, she was gone.

* * *

Law heaved a frustrated sigh, listening to Luffy whine about being hungry. They had just finished dinner, and Luffy had tried to steal some of Law's food, but the man had slapped him away in frustration.

"Law~" Luffy slid into Law's lap, wrapping his arms around the older man's neck carefully. "Onegai~" Luffy's begging was a _huge _turn on for Law, surprisingly, he sounded so needy and hoarse; even if he just wanted food. It sounded like Luffy was possessed by some sexual spirit, and it was _such _a delicious sound.

"We'll catch some more fish tomorrow, Monkey-ya." Law replied and Luffy whined in response, squirming about in Law's lap with a faint blush on his cheeks. Law supressed a groan of pleasure at the feeling, but let out a hoarse gasp when Luffy spoke up.

"Ne, Law, do you have a knife or something in your pocket?" Luffy shifted to get more comfortable, completely oblivious to Law's current situation. God, he was close to killing the little brat, he was _so _fucking horny; he hadn't been with somebody since a few months before the tests, and it had been a decent relationship... okay, it had been a decent sex life. "L-Law..!"

"Y-Yeah, it's a knife." Law lied, gripping Luffy's hips to keep him still, and also apply more friction to his aching crotch. Maybe, if he was desperate enough, he could get off on just this.

"Move it then!"

"_No_! I can't!" Law cried, yelping when Luffy jumped off of his lap, scowling down at Law with a frown on his face. He was clearly uncomfortable and frustrated, and Law frowned, rubbing at his temples before holding his arms out for Luffy. The younger boy reluctantly stepped into Law's arms, hugging the man tightly. "Gomenasai, I didn't mean to shout."

"It's okay." Luffy replied, nestling closer to Law's hair, surprising the older man. "L-Law..?"

"Hm?"

"Um.. I feel really weird around you.. as in.. it feels hot all the time." Law was surprised by the random confession, but smirked and brought his hands to Luffy's waist, earning a whimper of confusion from said boy. "L-Law, what're you doing-?!"

"Nothing, Monkey-ya." Law interrupted, upset by his better judgement. He could have had his way with Luffy, but _no_; his nicer side wanted Luffy to be fully willing, and not just feeling tingly, childish emotions around Law. Luffy relaxed at the answer, and shuffled away from Law swiftly.

"I'm going to sleep, my head aches." Luffy stated and Law smiled, nodding and allowing the younger boy to go. Luffy disappeared into the other room, and Law remained sat at the table alone, thinking carefully. Something didn't feel right, he felt a numb throbbing in his stomach, and he felt oddly on edge; like.. if he relaxed for one moment, something was going to jump out at him and slay him.

'_Heh.. Vergo-ya **did **say this test can do this to you, I should be use to it by now._' Even if he said that to himself, he was still uncomfortable with the odd feeling in his stomach. Maybe, just maybe, he should speak to Doflamingo about it after he gets out of this test; it'd be a good idea, right?

* * *

**Note: Yay, a long chapter!**

**The 'Strength' test will end in the next couple of chapters, just saying. If anyone notices a pattern between 'Uchiha Sasuke' from Naruto and Law's future plotline, then I'm basing it _loosely _off of how Sasuke goes off searching for power etc (spoilers whew). However, it'll be different from that. c:**

**I hope you enjoyed.**

**I'll check for spelling errors whenever, I'm tired rn & it's hard to concentrate when I'm tired.**

_**~ Faithful Strings.**_


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